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THE RELIABLE SOURCE Meet Bravo’s ‘Real’ D.C. representatives
Roxanne Roberts and Amy Argetsinger source from C1
government or politics; for the most part, neither do their husbands. Friends tell us most of the cast didn’t know each other before taping began last year. Bravo gave serious consideration to a lobbyist and a fundraiser, but both dropped out, because their jobs either required discretion or were too boring. Instead, we’ve got a modeling agency owner, a socialite mom, an expat, a real estate agent and, well, Michaele Salahi. We’ve written about them only a kajillion times over the past year as they’ve shown up at parties and cafes with TV cameras in tow, but let’s meet them — and the other housewives — again!
JOHN ROTTET/NEWS & OBSERVER VIA AP
Congressman on the street: N.C. Democrat Bob Etheridge.
A very candid camera reaction
So, what really happened when Rep. Bob Etheridge ran into a couple of self-described “students” on the streets of D.C. last week? The video confrontation between the obscure seven-term North Carolina Dem and two camera-wielding young men (“Who are you?” he demands. “Tell me who you are,” as he grabs the wrist of one) went viral Monday and left more questions than answers.
Who are the videographers?
Michaele Salahi, 44. Even before she and husband Tareq turned up at the November state dinner uninvited, they were notorious for their flamboyant polo matches and a long-running family feud over their Oasis Winery in Fauquier County. Raised in Oakton, Michaele worked at Nordstrom before marrying Tareq in a splashy 2003 ceremony. Though the statuesque blonde turned up with camera crews at Redskins cheerleader alumnae events, the organization denied she was a member. And we’re still getting e-mails from people who say the Salahis owe them money.
ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM Get more details on the
“Housewives” cast and see a photo gallery at
washingtonpost.com/style.
Catherine Ashley Ommanney, 40-ish. A D.C. newcomer, the British interior designer moved to the United States in summer 2008 when she married Charles Ommanney, a prizewinning photojournalist with Newsweek, after a brief courtship. The mother of two girls, Jade and Ruby, from a previous marriage, she was little known here before she emerged as part of the “Housewives” set. Turns out she’s perfect for reality TV: In 2006, she blabbed to a British tabloid about her makeout session with much younger Prince Harry. Bravo’s press release makes no notice of the news we broke last week — that she and Charles have recently separated — but this is probably irrelevant for them, since filming wrapped months before the split.
Mary Schmidt Amons, 43. The McLean socialite and mom of five is a native of the area. She’s the daughter of a telecom exec and wife of a telecom guy, Rich Amons, a stylish fellow on Washingtonian’s best-dressed list. They started early: Their oldest, Lolly, is 23; she and Mary were featured in 2005 stories in Marie Claire and on “Good Morning America” about mothers and daughters who look the same age. Mary also helped found Labels for Love, which runs the popular District Sample Sale, a semiannual shopping-for-charity event. Random fact: Her grandfather was 1950s broadcaster Arthur Godfrey. And something totally new we’re just learning from the Bravo press release: “Mary spent summers at the Kennedy residences as a child.” Fancy! No idea which Kennedy to call, so we’ll take their word for that.
Stacie Scott Turner, 42. She’s the only one with much connection to politics: Husband Jason worked in Adrian Fenty’s administration but left amid upheaval in the parks department. They’ve also hosted fundraisers. She’s a Howard University grad and a Harvard MBA who worked in marketing at BET and other companies before becoming a real estate agent with Long & Foster. They have two young children, Jacob and Catherine, and live in a former church in 16th Street Heights that they renovated into a mansion. Jason’s brother is a Paris-based hip-hop musician. Bravo’s press release touts Turner’s charity — brand-new, by the looks of it— set up to help teenage girls in foster care.
Lynda Erkiletian, 52. A divorced mom of four children, she’s the owner of T.H.E. Artist Agency, a Georgetown modeling firm that says it represents 500 models and stylists. (Bravo calls it “one of the top modeling agencies in D.C.” We say: How many others are there?) She used to date Christopher Reiter, the 40-ish owner of Muléh boutique, but now is involved with Ebong Eka, a mid-30s man-about- town accountant/aspiring designer. Last fall, she sold her four-bedroom condo at the Georgetown Ritz-Carlton for $5.3million and moved out of the city. She was named last year to Washingtonian’s best- dressed list. Bravo informs us she’s into astrology, “shooting clay pigeons, riding ATVs and cooking a mean fried chicken.”
Lots of theories about GOP operatives, but no one has come forward to take credit, reports our colleague David Weigel. The reason for stopping Etheridge outside a fundraiser for Nancy Pelosi? “A project,” one of the men said on the video. Anything happen that’s not on the tape? Unclear, since no other version of the encounter has emerged. The National Journalism Center and the Leadership Institute, two Virginia organizations that train conservative journalists (the latter boasts ACORN sting artist James O’Keefe), flatly denied the men worked for them, as did the National Republican Congressional Committee. “I apologize for my actions,” Etheridge said during a news conference Monday afternoon. “They were unacceptable.” He declined to say if parts of the exchange were edited out or speculate if conservatives had staged the clash for . . . well, a viral video. “I’m not going there,” he said.
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TUESDAY, JUNE 15, 2010
THEATER REVIEW Reviving Brecht: Adventurous troupe’s update takes ‘Courage’ by Celia Wren
The implicate-the-audience factor looms large in “Courage: A Political Theatre Revival,” the intelligently de- vised, disappointingly executed new of- fering from the adventurous local troupe Dog & Pony D.C. When you walk in to take your seat at this busy, immersive version of Bertolt Brecht’s “Mother Cour- age and Her Children,” you are offered a Pabst Blue Ribbon and handed a Regi- mental Recruit Information Form to fill out. Sometime during the next two hours, an actor gets you to hold a prop, urges you to accept a Slim Jim, or asks you point-blank if you have complaints about the show. The message: This para- ble about the public’s complicity in war and social injustice is, partly, a parable about you. The approach builds nicely on the ten-
ets of Brechtian theater, which famously aimed to keep audiences thinking and noticing, rather than allow them the comfort of a passive theatrical experi- ence. But director Rachel Grossman — who has called the piece a response not merely to current U.S. military engage- ments but to what she sees as decreased zeal for change following the 2008 elec- tion — wants this “Courage” to be fun, too. And some of it is. Brecht’s drama follows its title charac- ter through Europe’s 17th-century Thirty Years’ War: Bent on toughing out the conflict and protecting her three chil- dren, Mother Courage hawks merchan- dise to soldiers and civilians from her cart. In enjoyably ironic counterpoint to the scenario’s bleakness, designer Colin K. Bills has given this production a
rare moments of suffering, and the ac- tress doesn’t adequately suggest the ethi- cally compromised drive-to-survive that gives meaning to the character and the play. Avery and many of the other per- formers display little stage presence, and their restless movements, in combina- tion with a predominantly clownish act- ing style, sap the show’s focus. In fact, the show’s creators seem to val-
ue focus less than variety — witness the ninja costumes that one set of rampaging soldiers wears (Ivania Stack is costume designer); or the warbled bars from Kool & the Gang’s “Celebration” in a scene that depicts the onset of peace; or the climac- tic sequence staged as a game show, com- plete with “Let’s Make a Deal”-style doors. It’s a little gimmicky, sure, but then “Mother Courage” is a play that is potentially grueling and didactic. If only this production, which strives for acces- sibility and vim, had the polish to match its inventiveness.
style@washpost.com Wren is a freelance writer. CLINTON BRANDHAGEN WAR IS SWELL? Not quite, though there’s a carnival atmosphere here. Wyckham Avery stars as Mother Courage.
sprightly look, with Christmas lights and mysterious bundles wrapped in bright textiles strung over the three-quarters- thrust stage. On a platform behind the stage stands
a terrific band, headed by John Milosich, who has composed original music for the pointed cabaret-style songs that Brecht’s characters deliver. Working with lyrics by David Hare — whose adaptation of
DOONESBURY by Garry Trudeau
“Mother Courage” this production large- ly follows — Milosich has produced rol- licking numbers that blend alt-rock, American folk and Eastern European ca- dences (two of the musicians are accordi- onists; one’s a violinist).
Alas, the lyrics can be hard to hear.
Even more problematic is the produc- tion’s uneven acting. Colin Hovde turns in a compelling portrait of a hapless
chaplain; Augie Praley is funny as a cyn- ical cook; Mitch Mattson is expressively feral as Mother Courage’s son Eilif; and Betsy Rosen makes Eilif’s mute sister, Kattrin, a heartbreaking figure. But Wyckham Avery’s Courage, clad in modern bohemian garb, is uncharismat- ic and hugely unsatisfying. It’s hard to detect any through-line between her jok- ey, party-hearty mannerisms and her
CUL DE SAC by Richard Thompson Courage:
A Political Theatre Revival Based on “Mother Courage and Her Children” by Bertolt Brecht, adapted by David Hare. Directed by Rachel Grossman; co-conspirator, Lorraine Ressegger; design conspirator, Hannah J. Crowell; sound design, Neil McFadden;
dramaturgy, Nicole Jost and Jessica Holman. With Josh Drew, Jonathan Gadsden, Ariana Hodes, Farah Lawal, Jessica Lefkow, Jon
Reynolds and Jacob Yeh. Two hours. Through June 26 at Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 Seventh St. SE. Visit
www.dogandponydc.com.
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